Woodwind instrument mouthpiece



June 25, 1963 R, BRlLHART 3,094,891

WOODWIND INSTRUMENT MOUTHPIECE Filed Dec. 15, 1960 INVENTOR ARNOLD BRILHART nite This invention relates to mouthpieces for musical instruments of the single reed type, such as clarinets and Saxophones, and more particularly to an improved mouthpiece wherein an essentially standard size and shape mouthpiece body for a particular instrument may be adapted to suit the embouchure of the individual musician.

Conventional mouthpieces for any particular singlereed, woodwind instrument, for example a tenor saxophone, must be made in a variety of shapes and sizes so that the individual musician may have a mouthpiece which is reasonably well adapted to his embouchure, that is the configuration of his teeth and lips. The variations include differences in the angle between the upper and lower surfaces of the mouthpiece, differences in the transverse curvature of the upper surface of the mouthpiece, differences in the contours of the external surfaces of the mouthpiece, and differences in the facing which is the curvature of the lower surface of the mouthpiece adjacent the tip end of the bill. All of these variations are important in determining an individual musicians tone quality and the ease and comfort with which he can play for prolonged periods. It is apparent that for each one of these variables a limited number-say five or ten-of mouthpieces could be made to incorporate a sufficiently Wide range of differences in that one variable while all others were held constant in all the mouthpieces. But the real situation is quite different, for all the variable characteristics must be joined in a host of different combinations of contours and facings to meet the needs of different musicians.

Prior to this invention, it has been necessary for the mouthpiece manufacturer to have an extensive array of molds and tools to enable him to manufacture a full line of mouthpieces incorporating a sufiicient number of combinations of these differences. In order for the musician to benefit by the manufacturers efiiorts the dealer in conventional mouthpieces must continually stock at least one mouthpiece of each configuration. This generates obvious supply problems and necessarily ties up considerable amounts of capital.

My experience in the business of manufacturing mouthpieces has shown that the most important variables in the configuration of the mouthpieces are the thickness of the bite, which is basically determined by the angle between the upper and lower surfaces of the bill of the mouthpiece and the curvature of the upper surface of the bill, which is that portion of the mouthpiece which is inserted in the mouth of the instrumentalist, and the facing. The necessary variations in the facing of mouthpieces can be accommodated in a limited number of different contours; in quality mouthpieces these are usually machined at the factory. Apart from these differences, mouthpieces for instruments of the same family and key may be essentially identical in all other respects.

I have invented a new and improved mouthpiece which requires that the manufacturer produce only one basic configuration of mouthpiece for each different instrument and in which the essential variations in the thickness of bite and the contour of the upper surface of the mouthpiece may be varied to suit the needs of the individual musician by means of a separate insert portion which can be more economically manufactured and stocked in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. The diffiO ferent facings may be machined into the single basic mouthpiece body.

Similarly, the dealer may offer a full range of mouthpieces with a limited stock of these basic mouthpiece bodies which differ only in the facings.

According to my invention the mouthpiece for a singlereed type of musical instrument comprises a hollow, elongated body member adapted at one end for connection to the throat of a woodwind instrument and provided at the opposite end with a bill having a reed bearing portion for reed table and an upper insert seat portion, the thickness of the mouthpiece between the reed table and the insert seat portion being substantially less than the thickness of the desired ultimate contour of the mouthpiece. The insert seat portion extends for a substantial distance from the tip of the bill toward the center of the mouthpiece body and the included angle between the reed table and the insert seat is quite small. Further in accordance with my invention, 1 provide a separable insert which is shaped to be received in the insert seat of the mouthpiece body. The upper contour of the insert is shaped so as to provide, in combination with the bill portion of the mouthpiece body, the ultimate contour of the mouthpiece throughout the bite portion. Similarly, the sides of the insert are shaped to provide the ultimate contour of the lateral surfaces of the mouthpiece throughout that part of the mouthpiece embraced by the musicians lips and teeth. Means are provided for either permanently, semi-permanently or separably attaching a selected insert to the body of the mouthpiece so that the insert and the body of the mouthpiece become a unitary structure so far as the instrumentalist is concerned.

Single reed mouthpieces having inserts in the upper contours of their bills are not unknown. "Do the best of my knowledge, however, the purpose of such inserts is quite different from the purpose here. 'For example, mouthpieces have been made of various metals. Because these metals are hard it is desirable to place an insert of a softer material in the surface of the mouthpiece where the instrumentalist rests his upper teeth. In accordance with their limited purpose, such inserts are made so thin that the essential contours of the mouthpiece are determined by the shape of the body of the mouthpiece rather than by the insert, and it would not be possible to produce any substantial variation in the contour of the mouthpiece by varying the contour of the exposed surface of the insert. The soft insert merely provides a different surface material. Thus, these known mouthpieces do not afford, nor even suggest, the benefits of this invention.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that my invention provides a substantial simplification of the problems formerly faced by manufacturers and dealers in woodwind instrument mouthpieces and also provides the means by which an individual musician may be more economically afforded a much greater choice of mouthpiece contours.

These and other features of the invention are brought out in greater detail in the following description of a particular embodiment. In the description reference is made to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan View of a mouthpiece body according to my invention;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the mouthpiece body of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view partially broken away of the mouthpiece of FIG. 1 including an insert member which defines in part, the ultimate contour of the bill of the mouthpiece.

Referring to FIGS. 13, a mouthpiece body 10 has been illustrated which is of generally elongate, hollow shape. In the present instance, the mouthpiece illustrated is a saxophone mouthpiece. It may be formed of metal, hard rubber, plastic or any other suitable material. It has a forward end 11 which is adapted to be connected to the throat of the instrument. At the opposite end the mouthpiece body has a bill 12. The lower surface 13 of the body is substantially fiat throughout most of its length and is a reed table on which a vibratory reed is mounted. That portion of the lower surface which is adjacent the tip of the bill is curved according to the requirements of the individual instrumentalist and is called the facing 15. The position of the reed on the table is shown in phantom outline at 14 in FIG. 3.

FIGS. 1 and 2 make it at once apparent that the body of a mouthpiece according to my invention is radically different from any conventional mouthpiece. While the forward end of the mouthpiece body is conventional, the bill end is quite different. The profile of the bill is defined by the plane of the reed table 13 and the plane of the upper wall 17 and as seen in FIGS. 2 and 3 the included angle between these planes is substantially less than the corresponding included angle of a conventional mouthpiece body. The upper wall extends a substantial distance from the tip of the bill toward the middle of the body. The contour then steps abruptly upward at the transverse wall 16 which extends from the upper wall 17 of the bill to the upper wall 18 of the body. In this preferred form of the invention the walls 16 and 17 intersect at an obtuse angle. This integral bill of the body is neither the correct shape nor of sufiicient thickness for a proper embouchure.

According to my invention the mouthpiece body just described is provided with an insert 19 having a lower surface 20 and a forward end surface 21. These surfaces are shaped so as to fit the insert seat formed 'by the walls 16 and 17 of the body. The upper contour 22 of the insert then becomes the ultimate upper contour of the bill. The sectional view of the insert in FIG. 3 makes it plain that the substantial thickness of the insert permits the ultimate contour of the bill to have any desired shape best suited to the instrumentalists embouchure. An alternative to the contour 22 is shown in broken outline at 23 merely by way of illustration. In fact there are innumerable contours which the insert may assume, but the essential feature of the invention is that the variety of cont-ours may be manufactured and made available to the instrumentalist with only one basic mouthpiece body for a particular type of instrument. Aside from the facing, the significant variations so far as the instrumentalist is concerned are embodied in a variety of inserts, all of which may be made to fit the basic mouthpiece body.

Once the instrumentalist has selected the insert best suited to his embouchure the insert may be permanently fixed to the mouthpiece body simply by gluing the insert in the seat. In the alternative the insert and the seat may be provided with suitable means for releasably attaching the insert to the body. For example, the surfaces of the insert seat may have studs projecting from them. The insert may have mating holes to receive the studs so that the insert may be properly aligned and held in position on the insert seat by frictional engagement of the studs in the holes. These are merely suggested means for mounting the insert on the mouthpiece body. The invention is not limited to any particular means.

The mouthpiece body and the insert may be formed of the same or dissimilar materials. For example, both the body and the insert may "be made from any suitable plastic material or the mouthpiece body may be metal and the insert may be made of a softer material such as a plastic.

This detailed description of the presently preferred embodiment of this invention is only illustrative and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The invention is defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A mouthpiece for a single-reed type of woodwind instrument which comprises an elongated hollow body member adapted at one end for connection to the throat of an instrument and provided at the opposite end with a bill portion having a tip at the distal end thereof, said bill portion having opposed longitudinally extending contours extending from positions intermediate the ends of said body member to the tip thereof, one of said contours being a reed table and the other of said contours being an insert sea-t terminating in the inner end thereof in an upwardly extending shoulder, said insert seat extending laterally to the outermost contours of said bill portion throughout the length of said insert seat, the thickness of said bill portion between said reed table and said insert seat being substantially less than the thickness of the desired ultimate contour of the bill portion, an insert portion having a length substantially equal to the length of said insert seat and having a seating surface adapted to be received in said insert seat and having a contoured surface opposite said seating surface, the length of said insert being substantially equal to the length of said insert seat throughout its length and the thickness of said insert between said seating and contoured surfaces being such that, when the insert is in position in the insert seat on the body member, the combined thicknesses and contours of the insert portion and said bill portion form a mouthpiece having a desired contour suited to a particular embouchm'e.

2. A mouthpiece for a single-reed type of woodwind musical instrument, said mouthpiece comprising a body portion adapted at one end for connection to the throat of an instrument and having a substantially flat seat portion extending from the opposite end of said body portion to a position intermediate the ends thereof and terminating at said intermediate position in an upwardly extending shoulder, said mouthpiece further comprising a separable bite portion received in and engaging said seat portion and said shoulder portion, whereby said body portion may be provided with a bite portion of a desired alternate shape merely by removing the bite portion in place and substituting therefor a bite portion having the desired configuration.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,101,420 Erdahl June 23, 1914 1,525,105 Sinclair Feb. 3, 1925 1,803,268 Meyer et al. Apr. 28, 1931 2,988,947 Houser June 20, 1961 

2. A MOUTHPIECE FOR A SINGLE-REED TYPE OF WOODWIND MUSICAL INSTRUMENT, SAID MOUTHPIECE COMPRISING A BODY PORTION ADAPTED AT ONE END FOR CONNECTION TO THE THROAT OF AN INSTRUMENT AND HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT SEAT PORTION EXTENDING FROM THE OPPOSITE END OF SAID BODY PORTION TO A POSITION INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF AND TERMINATING AT SAID INTERMEDIATE POSITION IN AN UPWARDLY EXTENDING SHOULDER, SAID MOUTHPIECE FURTHER COMPRISING A SEPARABLE BITE PORTION RECEIVED IN AND ENGAGING SAID SEAT PORTION AND SAID SHOULDER PORTION, WHEREBY SAID BODY PORTION MAY BE PROVIDED WITH A BITE PORTION OF A DESIRED ALTERNATE SHAPE MERELY BY REMOVING THE BITE PORTION IN PLACE AND SUBSTITUTING THEREFOR A BITE PORTION HAVING THE DESIRED CONFIGURATION. 